Progressive throttle positioning systems have been employed in various automotive internal combustion engine applications to provide the desired control over air flow to the engine. Typically, a progressive throttle positioning system has a link operating a throttle lever so that a large lever arm is provided for initial throttle opening movement and a smaller lever arm is employed for subsequent throttle opening movement. In such applications, the throttle closing force provided by a throttle return spring maintains the throttle lever in contact with the link to assure that the throttle closes whenever the link is retracted.